1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to platform assemblies and, more particularly, to a portable deck system adapted for expandable assembly with structurally interconnecting side rail members.
2. History of the Prior Art
The advent of portable buildings such as manufactured housing, mobile homes, and transportable commercial units has necessitated a myriad of complementary structures facilitating the comfort and use of such portable buildings. For example, porches, sidewalks, decks and carports are often constructed adjacent manufactured housing to enhance their use. Generally, these structures are fixedly assembled from wood and/or concrete in the same manner that porches and garages are assembled adjacent permanent structures. Unfortunately, such units can be moved after a period of time which is, of course, inherent in the concept of mobile homes and mobile home parks. The permanent structures are seldom usable for subsequent occupants due to varying size and shape of mobile home structures and occupant preferences. Therefore, the permanent structures can become delapidated or destroyed which is both costly and wasteful.
More conventional prior art designs for mobile home parks and the like have incorporated wooden structures which are more easily disassembled after their intended use. The utilization of fiberglass panels for carport roof sections as well as prefabricted steel sections for carport support frames have likewise been found effective in this particular application. Heavy gauge steel and the like is, of course, not extremely portable relative to residential mobile homes and, therefore, simply provide a cost effective expedient to carport and collateral structure assembly methods.
Mobile home decks and stairways have likewise utilized concrete or basic steel structures which can require very few structural members and which are cost effective in temporary use. These assemblies are, however, not as aesthetically pleasing as many wooden structures fabricated from redwood, cedar and the like which is of particular import to owners of more expensive mobile homes as well as their use in commercial applications. For example, many commercial trailers, vans and the like are used for portable offices, shows and displays. Real estate sales offices at remote locations such as newly designed developments necessitate portable offices and buildings, the owners of which require an aesthetically pleasing appearance. For this reason, wooden platforms are generally constructed as porches and decks adjacent to the office buildings. In the area of recreation, lakeside decks, walks and piers are often constructed from wood for purposes of facilitating use of the lake, the appearance thereof, and access thereto. The conventional method of assembling such wood structures generally includes the use of nails which fixedly secure the structure together and prevent its disassembly without substantial damage. Moreover, the necessity for low cost assemblies in such wooden structures generally limit the degree of structural integrity provided by the wooden structure. This is particularly critical in commercial platform and deck applications where a plurality of people may assemble. Nails very often do not provide adequate structural interengagement when such weights are encountered and particularly in view of the fact that the structural design is often limited to single brace members incorporated for support of a single surface.
It would be an advantage therefore to overcome the problems of the prior art by providing a wooden deck assembly which was both structurally sound and portable in nature to facilitate uses in remote locations. The deck system of the present invention provides such an assembly by incorporating preassembled, fixedly secured platform and side rail truss members adapted for being coupled one to the other in structural interengagement therebetween in a myriad of designs, sizes and shapes. The side rail trusses are fabricated from wood in a decorative configuration which also provides the function of a truss when secured to distal ends and an intermediate section of the platform. The utilization of lag bolts for assembly and disassembly of the aforesaid fixedly assembled sections permits portability while maintaining structural integrity of the unit.